Hamza recounts how he survived the Zoobe blast + Photos

Mogadishu (Caasimada Online) – The Prime Minister of Somalia, Hamza Abdi Barre, officially launched the National Conference on Countering and Combating Extremist Ideology today, recounting how he survived the Zoobe explosion that occurred on this day 9 years ago, which claimed the lives of at least 587 people, while hundreds more were injured.

Hamza revealed that on this day, October 14, 2017, the Al-Shabaab group carried out a major tragedy in the country that affected thousands of civilians, resulting in hundreds of deaths, which showed the public that the group's actions have nothing to do with Islamic teachings, but instead serve the enemy of the Somali people.

The Prime Minister stated that he was among those who survived that explosion, noting that he was at his home, which is 200 steps away from the Zoobe intersection in Mogadishu.

He added that the vehicle that exploded passed by him, and he narrowly escaped, mentioning that the house he was living in at that time collapsed due to the explosion.

“I was among those whom God saved, I was there at that time, I went to a house we were living in which is 200 steps away from where the incident happened, when the explosion occurred I fell to the ground, and God saved me from the running vehicles, the house collapsed, we are all among those who survived,” said the Prime Minister.

He also pointed out that when his government took over the leadership of the country, it focused on having the Somali scholars clarify the misguided views of the Khawarij, after a meeting they held where they issued a fatwa confirming that terrorist groups have embodied the practices and actions of the Khawarij, and that it is obligatory to confront them in thought, power, and every possible way to eradicate them.

He further added that the Somali government has focused on eradicating the Khawarij groups both in terms of power and ideology, which has led to the Somali people today awakening to the fact that the ideology of that group poses a threat to their national and governmental existence.

Finally, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre called on the Somali people to unite their hands in order to eradicate the enemy groups whose ideology is misguided and are located in limited areas of our country, while the government is engaged in a strong fight to eliminate them throughout the entire Somali region.